What you need to know …
… about an announcement coming up on Tuesday
- NASCAR on NBC Sports tweeted that Jimmie Johnson would be making a “big announcement” on Tuesday afternoon
- The tweet directs fans to NBCSports.com/NASCAR
- There has been some speculation that Johnson is announcing his retirement, though his contract with Hendrick Motorsports goes through the end of the 2020 season, as does Ally Bank’s sponsorship agreement
- Seven-time champion Johnson won the rain-shortened Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona International Speedway last Sunday
For more information: Jimmie Johnson’s last contract extension … Ally Bank’s sponsorship announcement … Jimmie Johnson’s response on Twitter
~~~~~~~~~~
… about the Grand Marshal for the Daytona 500
- Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt will serve as the Grand Marshal for the Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 17th
- Watt has thrice won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year and became the first player in NFL history to record two 20-plus sack seasons in 2014
- Watt has also been recognized for his philanthropic efforts, most notably receiving the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award in 2017 after raising $41 million for the recovery efforts surrounding Hurricane Harvey
- Watt will be the first NFL player to serve as the Grand Marshal for the Daytona 500
For more information: Official story from Daytona International Speedway … Story from 247sports.com’s Steven Taranto … J.J. Watt’s NFL Player Profile
~~~~~~~~~~
… about the XFINITY and Truck Series entry lists for this weekend’s race at Daytona
- There are 38 cars on the entry list for the NASCAR XFINITY Series season-opener at Daytona International Speedway, a full field for the series
- There are 40 cars on the entry list for Daytona in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series
- Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski are the only Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers entered in the XFINITY Series race
- Drivers entered in the Truck Series race who are ineligible for points: Jason White, Ross Chastain, and John Hunter Nemechek
- Johnny Sauter is listed as the driver of the No. 13 Ford for ThorSport Racing, having been released from GMS Racing at the end of last season
- Entries in the XFINITY Series listing the driver as “TBA”: No. 17 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet; No. 38 RSS Racing Chevrolet; No. 39 RSS Racing Chevrolet; No. 52 Means Motorsports Chevrolet; and the No. 66 Motorsports Business Management Toyota
For more information: Entry list for the NASCAR Racing Experience 300 … Entry list for the NextEra Energy Resources 250 … Story from NBC Sports’ Dustin Long
~~~~~~~~~~
… about the stage lengths for the XFINITY, Truck Series
- NASCAR has announced the 2019 stage lengths for the XFINITY Series and the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series
- Each series will continue to have two stage breaks, with the end of the third stage coming at the checkered flag
- The XFINITY Series and Truck Series both have their season-opening races at Daytona International Speedway this weekend
- For the XFINITY Series, Stage 1 will end on lap 30, Stage 2 will end on lap 60, and the final stage/race will end on lap 120
- For the Truck Series, Stage 1 will conclude on lap 20, Stage 2 on lap 40, and Stage 3 on lap 100
For more information: Truck Series stage lengths … XFINITY Series stage lengths … The stage racing format explained
~~~~~~~~~~
… about the company that has expanded its sponsorship of Joe Gibbs Racing
- iK9, a canine security services and training company administered by Xtreme Concepts, will be the primary brand for Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Jeffrey Earnhardt, Kyle Busch, and Brandon Jones in the NASCAR XFINITY Series
- Xtreme Concepts & iK9 have expanded their partnership to 24 races with JGR — nine races with Earnhardt, fives races with Busch, and 10 races with Jones
- The full XFINITY Series schedule is 33 races
For more information: Official release from Joe Gibbs Racing … Story from our own Caleb Whisler … More info about iK9
~~~~~~~~~~
If you would like to receive this column in your inbox, please e-mail me and let me know: [email protected].
You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram.